New in your News Feed: Facebook Trending

It’s what people are talking about on Facebook

Facebook has introduced a new feature you may have noticed on your homepage. Trending, which lies to the right of your News Feed, is a compilation of some of the hot topics trending on Facebook. Each suggested topic has a title and a short explanatory introduction.

Clicking a Trending suggestion takes you to a listing of the Page posts that are getting all the shares and comments about that subject. The featured Pages include popular news, organization or personality sites – or sites that are primarily obsessed with scandal and misbehavior. Don’t expect Trending to deal with only substantive issues. Trending is all about the fact that Alec Baldwin was just arrested for riding his bicycle the wrong way on a street in New York City and the latest Bieber antic. It’s what people are commenting and sharing on Facebook. Facebook is trying to capitalize on that.

The featured posts include some of the comments. Be prepared when clicking on a controversial link, it can get ugly out there.

Facebook has said that the items you see in Trending are personalized for you based on your interests and history on Facebook. I didn’t find that to be the case. Take a look at your Trending area and let me know, did Facebook show you things that interest you?

Ken Charvoz

Ken is an accidental geek on (at least) his 5th career. Ken has written dozens of manuals and how-to’s as a blogger and the Managing Technology Editor for The OASIS Institute. Follow Ken on Twitter at @KenCharvoz Other posts by Ken Charvoz

Full biography

Ken is an accidental geek on (at least) his 5th career. Ken has written dozens of manuals and how-to’s as a blogger and the Managing Technology Editor for The OASIS Institute, Ken’s passions include volunteerism, travel, and cycling. You’ll often find him hunched over a laptop near a beach. Ken loves working with OASIS partners and instructors who are making a difference in the lives of adult learners. One of his favorite classes to teach is Facebook because it can help bring far-flung families a bit closer together and help the elderly feel more connected and relevant to the world around them. Follow Ken on Twitter at @KenCharvoz